


He's My Family and No One Else's

by InsAnimeGamer, thedaveanon



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Angst, Crocker Corp, Crockertier, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Strider Feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-17
Updated: 2015-01-18
Packaged: 2018-01-25 12:38:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1648925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InsAnimeGamer/pseuds/InsAnimeGamer, https://archiveofourown.org/users/thedaveanon/pseuds/thedaveanon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ever wonder how things messed up to send Dirk Strider and Roxy Lalonde centuries away into the future?<br/>Yeah.<br/>They always wondered that too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. An Unexpected Visitor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A young Dirk Strider sat in his living room. David was out, leaving Dirk home alone. What kind of a predicament would Dirk find himself in? It can't be too terrible. ...Right?

Five-year-old Dirk sat happily on the couch in his white long-sleeved pajamas that were dotted with tiny orange hats. He was watching magical girl anime as he waited on Bo to come home from work with dinner. He heard the sound of the front door opening and he hopped of the couch in excitement, turning off the TV as he raced to the door with Cal to greet his older brother.

But when he saw who was actually at the door, he froze.

He squeezed Cal nervously as he stared at the strange lady standing in front of him. She was tall, and had gray skin; long, thick black hair; and tall, yellow/orange horns atop Her head. “You’re not Bo…” he trembled.

She grinned deviously at him. “oh, i know sweetheart,” She chuckled, and Dirk squeezed his puppet tighter.

“You’re scaring me…” he said, backing away from Her some. He didn’t like the look of Her one bit.

“i’m afraid “bo” can’t come back for a while,” She said slyly. “so he asked me to watch you.” She offered out a hand for him to take. “ocray?” He trembled and hugged Cal tight. “it’s alright; i’m not gonna hurt you.”

“Where's big Bo?” he asked, puffing out his cheeks.

“he’s…a little busy. he’ll be back. but in the meantime-” She offered Her hand again, taking a step closer.

He glanced at Her hand, and then he looked at Her face. “He told me not to trust strangers.”

“oh! of course, silly me. you can call me Condy-”

“Candy? That's a fishy name.”

“-your big brother asked me to watch you for a little while.”

“…Prove it.”

“prove it?”

“Prove big Bo told you so.”

“um okay. how should i do that?”

He thought for a while, thinking up a question. “…What's his first name?”

She sighed, sounding a little relieved, running a hand through Her hair. “David.”

He nodded and walked over to Her. “Okay,” he said, deciding to trust Her, and he reached his hand up to Hers.

She smiled, taking his hand. “follow me now,” She purred. “we're gonna have some fun, ocray?”

Dirk nodded, dragging Lil Cal behind him as She led him up to the roof. He frowned when he noticed the bright red rocket board with a white trident symbol which sat waiting for them. “We're leaving?”

“just for a little bit; i left something cooking when i left and i don’t want to sea the place burn down.”

“Mmk.” He started to climb on, but She shook Her head and scooped him up into Her arms, making him scramble to grab Cal to keep from dropping him.

“ah ah,” She cooed, “don't want you to fall off now. here, i’ll hold you.” She offered him a smile, almost genuine, but not quite there.

He hugged Cal tightly. “O-Okay.” This lady still weirded him out.

She held him securely in Her arms as She climbed onto the board, and then they took off into the sky, the board rocketing rather fast. Dirk did his best to not look down; he even mumbled to himself over and over not to. He held his shades to his face so they don't fly off.

~

The board began to slow down as they came in sight of a small, red and white house at the center of a field. The compelling feeling to look down was too strong for Dirk and he did so, furrowing his eyebrows at the house. He thought it rather short, having been raised in a highrise apartment his whole life. “Are we there yet?”

She smiled, and chuckled a little at his expression. “almost. and also, i know it looks small, but its much bigger inside.”

“Like from that one sci-fi Bo watches sometimes?”

She waved off the question. “shore, shore.” Once they landed, She carried him inside, not even letting him get down, and went down a few halls to a small bedroom.  The room itself is about average size. The walls were painted a sky blue and the rug on the hardwood floor was royal blue. In one corner sat a few boxes of Legos, and in its opposite corner was a tall teal blue bookshelf with a blue-gray reading chair beside it. At the center against the wall farthest from the door was a big, queen-sized bed with 

He looked around the room. “Where am I?”

"oh, just my son's old bedroom. he doesn't use it much anymoor, so if you want to hang out here, you're whalecome to."

"…You're old then."

She hesitated. "whale, yes. and?"

He looked down at the floor from his place in Her arms. "Tall."

"yes i am"

"Really tall" he said. "I mean reely."

She blinked at the pun. "whale now. anywho-"

"You're ears are funny too," he interrupted. "Like fish fins."

She rolled Her eyes and walked over to the bed, plopping him on top of it. "anyway, i have some cookies to get back to right now, so wait here, alright?"

"Mmk," he replied, giving a light kick to the mattress to test the bounciness, but  She had already gone to the door. She smiled and gave him a little wave, and then shut the door behind Her. Dirk  rolled off the bed and began to snoop around the room, bringing Cal with him. "That lady's weird, huh Cal?" He wandered to the door and found it locked. He was starting to feel bad for going with her, but he is quickly distracted by the smell of fresh baked cookies beginning to drift through the halls. The little kid that he his gets bored and hops onto the bed, jumping up and down with Cal. Soon, however,  he gets bored and crawls off the bed. He sits down and starts building with the Lego bricks.

~

After finishing about two large batches of cookies, She put a few on a plate and carries the plate back to his room. She unlocks the door quietly, glances in, places the plate on the table beside the door, and then closes the door again, locking it back. 

At the sound of the lock, Dirk turned his head and sees the plate of cookies. He rushed over to it and snagged a few, knocking his building over in the process. He attempts to feed Lil Cal one too. He stuffed a few in his mouth and then went over to the bookshelf. He used the Sassacre book as a stepladder as he looks around the shelves. Most of the books were joke books, books about puns, and there are also a few cook books. Dirk stuck his tongue out at the selection and hopped off, and back onto the bed he jumped. _Yep,_ he thought. _Way better._

His jumps keep getting higher and higher until he jumps a bit too far to the right and crashes onto the floor. Being the silent crier that he is, he just curls up next to Cal and lets the tears fall. He sniffled and crawled onto the bed to rest his leg. He hugged Cal tightly. "Cal, where do you think Bo is?"

Suddenly, the door to the throne room was kicked open with a loud bang. Condy smirked from Her place on the throne. The fun was about to begin. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IAG:   
> DUN DUN DUN! Looks like little Dirk's in some trouble. What will happen? Who kicked the door open?? Actually, I'm pretty sure you all know who kicked the door open... Aw well.
> 
> This is personally my first co-published work (or published for that matter), so feedback both positive and critical are accepted and greatly appreciated.


	2. Striffing and a Memory Wiping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dirk has grown worried. Where is his brother? He isn't sure he completely trusts the strange lady anymore…

Dirk heard a loud thud from outside the room he was in, and he sat up in bed quickly, holding Cal tightly in his arms. “Hello?” he called.

There was no response. He could hear quiet periods for a while, each interrupted by an angry, muffled yell, and then followed by another period of silence. It was a yell that sounded faintly familiar…

He climbed off the bed and shook the pain from his sprained ankle off; Bro always told him to walk this kind of stuff off anyway. He wandered up to the door and pressed his ear against it. “Bo?”

With his ear now to the door, the yell becomes somewhat clearer, and he could actually make some of the words out: “im gonna KILL YOU if you dont tell me WHERE HE IS right NOW!” At that, he gasped, recognizing the voice. “Bo! I'm in here!” he called, trying the locked door again. He banged on the door, excited to see him. When no one came or opened the door, he laid on the floor and tried poking his fingers underneath it. In his mind, he figured Dave would be able to see his tiny fingers and open the door. “Boooo! In heeeere!”

~

The Condesce smirked at David cruelly from Her place atop Her throne. The Strider glared angrily at Her. “im giving you one last chance” he snarled. “where. is. my. brother” She chuckled a little, and then snapped Her fingers. “whale, if you want to sea him so bad, then I guess I’ll let you sea him”

~

Her finger snap triggered two of Her robot guards to go to retrieve Dirk. They walked clankily up to Dirk’s door and opened it, standing in a way that completely blocked the exit. One of them quickly grabbed Dirk by the back of his shirt, lifting him up into the air a little bit. “Put me down! I can walk!” Dirk whined in protest as he kicked his legs, keeping a tight hold on Cal's arm. “Big dummy; let go! Bo!”

The robot holding him attempted to hold him still while the other held his arms securely behind his back and placed a pair of small handcuffs on his wrists. “Lemme go now! Bo-mmphm!” The robot placed a gag over his mouth as he cried out in protest. He squirmed around as much as he could, calling for Dave while kicking and screaming through the gag. 

One of the guards smacked him across the face, hard, leaving a bruise. He immediately stopped squirming and started to silently cry again, gripping Cal's arm as tight as he can in his hand. Each of the guards then take an arm, holding him between them and walk him towards the throne room. 

~

She smirked as the party entered the room, and chuckled at David, who stood angrily in front of the steps leading up to Her throne, his sword drawn in anger. He hadn’t noticed the bound and gagged Dirk yet.

Dave growled at Her angrily “tell me where my brother is you witch or so help me-”

Dirk’s eyes lit up when he saw his older brother, still unsure of what was happening, and he attempted to get his attention by calling him as best he could. “Mhh!” 

She grinned as Dave whirled around. He paled at the sight of his little bro’s predicament. Before Dave could do or say anything else, She beckoned the guards to bring Dirk over. They silently carried the struggling boy up to Her throne and sat him in Her lap. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders to hold him tightly to Her, not letting him escape. Dirk attempted to kick Her and wiggle free from Her grasp, but alas. She maintained a tight grip.

Dave growled angrily. “let him go, Condy”

She chuckled at his threatening tone, petting Dirk on the head almost lovingly. “nah” She replied. “i dont fink i want to” Dirk tried hitting his head against her and even hitting her with Lil Cal is ineffective. She squeezed the blonde boy a little in a hug, holding him tight, and smirked evilly at Dave. “he’s mine now”

“hes not fucking yours!” Dave snapped. Dirk shook his head with a muffled scream, agreeing with his brother as he continued to struggle. He was trying his hardest not to cry in front of Dave, but he was getting scared.

The older blonde looked at his brother worriedly. “…what do you want from me. please; ill do anything! just give back my brother”

In a desperate attempt to annoy Her, Dirk tried to poke Her with his triangle shades. _Yeah, that'll work…_ In response, She pulled them off of him. She grinned at Dave as She slipped the shades onto Her own face. “anyfin, you say?” She asked slyly. Dirk frantically tried to flail to get them back, but neither She nor the chains allowed any of it. His screams began to grow tired.

“anything” Dave promised. “just please-” He faltered, trying to reach for him, worry clearly etched on his face. “dont hurt him”

Dirk looked at Dave and tried to tell him he's fine, but the only distinguishable sounds that came out of his mouth were grunts and murmurs.

“aw, how cute. big brother to the rescue and the younger is completely helpless” She chuckled, caressing Dirk’s cheek, holding his chin and turning his head towards Her face.

He tried to wiggle free again, flailing his legs and restricted arms and Cal as much as possible. He hated her touch now and wanted away; he want his Bro. “Mmhhmmphh!”

Sensing his distress, Dave growled threateningly. “dont touch him!”

At that, She quickly grabbed Dirk by the hair and pulled his head back slightly, not enough to cause damage, but enough to tilt his head back somewhat painfully. “ah, ah, ah, careful Strider” She said in a warning tone. “he’s a fragile little fin, and we'd all hate to sea him snap, right?” Dirk screamed into the gag, and tried kicking her again, lazily due to his growing exhaustion. He looked away from Dave as tears formed in his eyes. He was confused and lost, and he just wanted to curl up and be anywhere but here right now.

Dave’s eyes widen as he fearfully looked at Dirk, and he took a small step back. Every instinct told him to run, but it also said to not leave Dirk. “…what will it take” he finally asked, his voice shaky. “what do i have to do to get him back”

She smirks, loosening Her grip on Dirk slightly so She could pet him again, but not enough for him to get away. “what can you do? oh i can tell you that” She sneered. He sniffled and gave up on kicking; his ankle burned with pain. He just rocked back and forth in Her lap, humming the My Little Pony theme to keep himself calm. He was too tired to anything more than twitch his head away from Her hand. “you and your sister must stop trying to overthrow me; i mean reely, it’s just bothersome” Condy continued. “also, neither of you can write another book or movie badmouthing me” Dirk doesn't understand what the hell is going on and continues humming away. “and you must ‘disappear’ from the world”

His brother frowned. “and just let you go on destroying it? fat chance Condy”

She chuckled at his answer. “then i guess the buoy is mine” Dirk mewled again, but he doesn't bother squirming, having grown too tired to try anymore. He tried spitting the gag out, the spit covering it at this point hopefully helping.

Dave glanced at Dirk, and then became angry at Her. Really angry. His grip on his sword tightened and he glanced down at it, and then at Her, getting an idea. “hey Condy. i may not be willing to do what you asked. but fight me” Dave challenged. “winner keeps him; loser leaves empty-handed”

She considered it, petting Dirk. Then She grinned and snapped Her fingers, and the guards pick Dirk up from Her lap.

He managed to slip the gag onto his bottom lip right then and let Her have it. “You're a big mean witch bitch and your cookies fucking stink and taste like horse shit!”

She chuckled and pat his head. “oh, you won’t be finking that when i’m finished with you, sweetie. but right now-” One of the guards hands Her Her trident, which She twirls expertly, grinning devilishly at Dave. “i have a Strider's ass to kick”

“Old fish witch bitch! Witch biiitch!” he yelled, and he attempted to bite Her. She bared Her shark-like teeth at him with a warning growl and he spit in Her face. “Gimme my shades back! I don't want your fish stink on them!”

She lay the triangle shades on the armrest of Her throne and patted him on the head, muttering to him, “oh i’m gonna LOV-E erasing your memory after i win you away from your brother”

“You don't scare me! Bo taught me not to be scared! Bo!”

“dont worry little bro, i gotcha” Dave assured him.

“that’s cute” She chuckled. “hmm, but Dirk _Crocker_ does have a nice ring to it”

“Kick her face cause She doesn't have an ass to kick!”

She sighed. “so much room for improvement. and manners will be the first thing you learn”

“Says the ugly fish lady who can't bake for shit,” he said back angrily.

She fixed his gag and then turned back to Dave, twirling Her trident. “betta get used to the cooking, Dirk, because soon it’ll be all you can eat” He rolled off the armrest and kicked the back of Her dumb throne, yelling through the spit covered gag.  “oh! but before i forget-” She snapped Her fingers and the guards grabbed him, lifting him up into the air. One of them grabbed his shades on a side order and carry them and Dirk out.

“hey, no wait!-” Dave began to protest, but She cut him off quickly by attacking suddenly.  Dirk squirmed around in the robots’ grips and screams more, muffled things that sounded like "Bitch witch" and "Kick Her ass Bo".  The two robots carried him out of the room and down several halls. The group stopped at one door and unlocked it.

The room seemed like some sort of laboratory. The tiled floor was a lavender purple color, and the walls were a white-washed gray in the dim light. On the right wall was a large, flatscreen computer monitor. A high-tech desk and touch screen keyboard sat underneath the monitor with a swivel stool nearby. Also by the enormous monitor was a wheeled exam table.

It was on this exam table the two guards dropped Dirk upon. He continued his muffled screaming despite being farther away from the throne room. He squirmed, trying to break away from the guards as they uncuffed him. And then one of them did the unforgivable: the guard pried Cal away from him. Dirk flailed his arms and screamed loudly in protest into his gag. THAT crossed the line. The guard set Cal on another table nearby, and put his shades beside the puppet.

He looked over at Cal and gave him a reassuring look that said, 'you'll be okay' as Dirk’s wrists and ankles were pinned down and then clasped to the table by thick metal clamps. He twisted and squirmed a few more times before taking a break. He was exhausted, and this didn’t help any.

Next the gag was removed from his mouth and he took the opportunity to make his protests know. “Big dumb meanie bi- ow!” A needle filled with a special sedation was injected into his left arm, making him drowsier than he already was. “Big meanie… bitchy… dumb… meanie…” The computer nearby springs to life, pulling up multiple programs and files. One of the guards attempted to force Dirk hold his head and neck up some.

“Y…y'all suck…” He doesn't squirm much other than lazily shake his head. The guard grumbled digitally at his refusal. Dirk squeezed his eyes shut and opened them again, too tired fight back anymore.

Another monitor in the room was picking up the recording from the throne room, and the fight sounded pretty brutal. He glanced over to the new monitor, squeezing his eyes shut real quick so his vision that was rapidly becoming hazy could focus better. “…Bo?”

Unfortunatly, it was only audio, and Dave couldn’t hear him, but things didn’t sound like they were going well for the elder Strider. The guard poked Dirk’s head in annoyance, trying to get him to pick up his head again.

Dirk didn't understand what was going on, just that his Bro sounded in bad shape or something. He started humming again in distress, trying to block it out. He reluctantly lifted his head for the guard, who held it still to keep it from moving as the robot guard made a cut near the base of his neck, close to the spinal cord but not quite on top of it. He mewled and whined at the weird/painful feeling as a few wires are connected to certain points in his cut, all touching his spine in some way. Dirk’s body was too tired to twist around more. He whimpered for 'Bo' and 'Cal' multiple times.

A cloth was placed under his neck where the cut is to keep blood from going everywhere and a few more programs are pulled up on the first computer screen. He began to silently cry again, his small fingers trying to reach for Cal in his restrictive position.

Out of nowhere, a light, tingling feeling suddenly jolted through him for a few minutes, blurring his vision, filling his ears with the sound of static, filling his nose with the stench of slightly burnt skin, and causing every thought in his mind to suddenly scatter randomly. After the painful feeling had passed, his body went limp, his voice trailed off from his calling, and exhaustion hits him like a bullet train. Every joint hurt to move. He couldn't even function words or think clearly. In his daze he couldn't even seem to care what was happening around him.

The door through which he had come into this awful room opened and a figure ran in, closing the door behind them. He saw the figure in his peripheral vision and whimpers in acknowledgement. In his haze, he could hardly make anything out, nor could he even tell who it was. The figure, who is Condy, locked the door behind Her, and moved over to the computer. Dirk followed Her with his eyes, weakly whining. It was the only sort of verbal communication he could offer to the unknown figure in the room. She typed at the computer, setting it up with one plan in mind. She set up the proper files and began a transport of certain files into one particular file on the computer.

As the transfer began, She moved to the far corner, out of Dirk’s line of vision, and his eyelids felt heavy and started drooping closed. His head hurt and he just wanted to sleep. The sleepiness overtakes the pain and he passes right the fuck out. Sweet dreams, young Strider.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IAG:  
> Oh god, rereading this is making me remember the emotions running through my head while helping to write this. Dirk nooo! What's going to happen to Bo? What is Condy going to do with Dirk?? Next time on Dragon Ba- wait wrong fandom. (That was stupid, sorry.)
> 
> Again, comments would be HIGHLY appreciated. No need to be shy, we won't bite (or I won't bite). Thank you for reading!


	3. Cuddles and Cookies

The Condescension waited for Her file transfer to finish, by which time young Dirk Strider had passed out on the table. "File Transfer Complete" flashed on the screen in green and She walked up to the computer again, finished everything up, disconnected the wires from the little boy, bandaged the cut on his neck, and unstrapped him from the exam table. She paused in front of the unconscious boy and brushed his blonde hair back soothingly, and then She moved Cal and the shades to a hidden spot so he would not see them when he woke up again. She returned shortly and took a seat beside the cot.

~

Dirk’s dreams were void of anything as he's slept. Poor thing. After a while, he finally yawns himself awake. She lovingly purred a little when She saw his eyes flutter open, brushing his hair out of his face. “hey baby, you ocray?” She cooed.

He nodded as he rubbed the sleepiness from his eyes, stretching his legs. “I feel funny.”

“oh baby, i was so worried!” She purred, brushing his hair back.

“Why? What happened?“ He looked over at where the voice was coming from and he saw Her as She sat at his bedside.

“i was so afraid you weren’t gonna make it,” She explained. “outta nowhere one of them damn Striders came and tried to hurt you”

He yawned and stretched, rubbing his head. “A strider? Whas that?”

She smiled softly at the slip up, but concern dominated Her eyes. “a horrible family of rebels and crooks. he's waiting out there in another room; he wants to take you away from me but i’m not gonna let him. you’re my baby, right Dirk?”

He sat up, rubbing his eyes. “Big meanie he is then.” He nodded, and opened his arms, wanting Her to carry him.

She nodded, and pulled him close, wrapping Her arms around him and pulling him into Her lap "he is a big meanie. the biggest meanie of them all"

"I bet I could take 'im."

She pet his head, kissing it a few times. "no dear. that's what you thought when he attacked and i almost lost you. in more ways than one"

He looked down, ashamed he had worried Her, and he hugged Her to make Her feel better. "Okay, I'll be good."

She smiled and kissed his cheek. "oh, it's alright. i just want my baby to stay safe" She snapped Her fingers, having the guards take care of Strider, and then She goes back to petting dirks hair and kissing his head.

Dirk nuzzled Her and looked up at Her with innocent eyes. "Is the meanie gonna go away soon?"

She smiled. "yes, he's long gone, sweetie. but you need rest, Dirk. hold on to mummy, okay?

"Mmk," he replied and clung to Her. She held him securely, and stood, carrying him back to his room. "here we are" He nodded and spotted the plate of cookies that still rested on the table. He tried to reach for one from Her arms. She noticed and carried him over to the bed, laying him down, and then brought the plate over to him. "here you are Dirk"

A huge grin plastered onto his face as he stuffed one into his mouth. "Thank you!"

"although, these aren't very warm. i have warmer ones in the kitchen if you want me to bring some"

He nodded happily and finished the one in his mouth. She chuckled a little as he stuffed his face, and then took the plate with Her to get more. He straightened the blanket out a bit since it was so messy for some reason and got comfy once he was done. She smiled warmly at him when She returns, a plate a deliciously warm cookies in Her hand.

He bounced up and down a bit, smiling at the sight. "Thank you!" She smiled at him, and he smiled back as best he could with cookie in his mouth. He swallowed before he began to speak. "You're good at baking, miss."

She smiled, but it looked sad. "thank you, Dirk. tell me"

"Hm?" He ate another cookie.

"how much do you remember?" She asked nervously. "you called me miss instead of mummy"

He sat there thinking for a moment and took another bite. "Not much. I know my name's Dirk," he replied, and then stopped, looking up at Her. "Did I call you mummy before?"

She gave him a sad look. "yes"

He looked down for a second, sad he had made Her sad, and then leaned over to hug Her. "Then I'll call you mummy."

"oh Dirk…" She wiped Her eyes and then wrapped Her arms around him, pulling him close. "don’t worry, i'll kelp you remember everyfin again; i promise" She kissed the top of his head.

"Okay, mummy." He smiled and shifted his legs around in his bed. She ran a hand through his hair and smiled at him. She pulled him into Her lap and squeezed him in a hug, which he returned as he yawned sleepily. "I like your hugs…"

She smiled and squeezed him a little. "and i love yours moor" She said as She ran a hand soothingly through his hair, and kissed the top of his head. "oh my sweet little baby…"

He smiled and then sat there a moment in thought. "Hey mummy?"

"yes dear? what is it?"

He frowned a bit and looked around his bed as though he were looking for something. He wrapped his arms around himself as if hugging something. "I think I'm missing something…"

She tilted Her head with a small frown, thinking. "hmm…no i don’t fink so" Her CrockerPad goes off, signaling an incoming message or notice. She sighed in frustration, and then let go of him to check it. "just a minute dear" He nodded and crawled back into the bed, curling up in the blanket while he waited on Her. As She read the message, She raised an eyebrow and muttered a little to Herself. "…oh He’s gotta be joking"

He stood up on the bed and tried reading it even though he can't see it from his angle. "Who's joking about what?"

She grinned, moving the screen to where it wasn't visible. "oh, my boss is all. and actually, now that i fink aboat it, i think you did leave somefin in the medical room. here, i’ll go get it, alright?" He nodded, grinning happily, and he jumped on the bed a bit. "ah ah, no jumping on the bed" She scolded. "i don't want you to fall and hurt yourshellf"

He puffed his cheeks out and flopped down on the bed. "Fine," he grumbled as he pulled the covers over him.

She smiled and kissed him on the head. "i love you"

"I love you too." He smiled back warmly and snuggled into the blanket.

She hopped up from Her seat and walks out of the room. While She is gone he fidgeted around in his bed, anxious, but he wasn't sure why.

Condy smiled at him as She reenters the bedroom and Dirk quickly noticed Cal, who She held in Her hands. He smiled widely and extended his arms, curling his fingers as if he would grab him from across the room if he could. She chuckled lightly at the sight and walked over to him, handing the puppet to him, taking Her seat on his bed again.

He squeezed Cal in his arms and lay down, smiling. "Thank you mummy."

She smiled back. "you’re whalecome, Dirky"

He nuzzled the puppet, and then looked up at Her. "Who's your boss?"

"oh, you can just call him Mr. English"

"Is he nice?"

She hesitated on Her answer. "whale, it depends on your definition of nice"

He giggled at the comment and felt himself growing tired, yawning as he snagged another cookie. She smiled and pet his head, running Her fingers through his hair. With crumbs still covering his face, he hugged Cal one last time before his eyelids drooped closed. "Night mummy," he mumbled sleepily.

She leaned over and kissed his forehead, petting his head one last time. "good night, my little Prince" She murmured lovingly and smiled as She stood, and turned off the light as She exited the room, standing in the doorway. "do you want the door cracked?"

He gave Her a sweet, innocent look. "Please?"

She smiled, and then left it cracked open for him as he requested. He let out a happy sigh before he rolled around a bit, trying to get comfortable in the bed.

~

She baked cookies and brownies to give Her something else to do while he slept. The heavenly smell drifted through the hallways as Dirk tried all he could do to get comfortable enough to doze off. He grumbled quietly to himself. "Something is still missing, Cal," he whispered to the puppet. He caught a whiff of the heavenly smell of cookies and brownies as the scent trailed into his room. He crawled out of bed, dragging Cal behind him as he walked to the door and gently pushed it open.

He tiptoed down the hall, dragging Lil Cal with him as he let his nose lead the way as it followed the wonderful aroma.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //This is late. This is so very, very late. This was supposed to be posted last week, dangit. Oh well, its here now; chapter 3 of Dirk's troubles. Fun.  
> I promise I will try to post chapter 4 sooner than next week. My summer break will begin next week, so I will have plenty of time to work on chapters in most of that time range hopefully.  
> Please leave a comment or anything, because seeing support for this is what makes both authors really happy and motivated to make more!!  
> See you next chapter!  
> ~thedaveanon\


	4. Cookies, Computers, and a Stranger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> //DEAR GOD THIS IS LATE. I am so sorry for messing up the chapters last time and accidentally posting a chapter twice. PLEASE PLEASE FORGIVE ME IT WASN'T INTENTIONAL. This chapter is long to hopefully make up for the wait.  
> ~thedaveanon\

Condy softly hummed a little as She cooked, wearing Her Betty Crocker apron. Dirk poked his head in, looking in the kitchen. He grinned when he saw Her and then "sneaked" up behind her, giggling to himself as he tried his hardest to be quiet. She heard the giggles, though She pretended not to, smiling.  He snuck up really close behind Her and he quickly hugged Her leg. She jumped a little, and looked back at him with a warm smile. He laughed at Her little jump, thinking he had successfully scared Her, and he stood on his tiptoes, sniffing. "Whatcha doin?" he asked.

"shello Dirk" She cooed as She set the bowl of batter down and scooped him up into Her arms. "i’m baking"

"Smells good." He pulled Cal into his arms, mimicking how She was holding him. She smiled, and held him on Her hip as She grabbed the spoon and mixed the batter more. He clung to Her and watched. "Can I help?"

"shore you can" She handed him the spoon. "be careful not to spill it now, ocray?"

He nodded and reached over to mix the bowl. His motions were a bit dis-patterned and slow, but he still tried. "Am I doing it right?"

She smiled. "you're doing fine" She sat him on the counter and placed the bowl in his lap, and then went to the oven to check on the brownies already in there. He continued stirring vigorously, almost spilling it a couple of times. He concentrated as much as he could into mixing while She opened up the oven and sniffed, sticking a small toothpick in the batch to see if it was finished. She smiled and snatched up an oven mitt and pulled out the tray and set it down on top of the stove top to cool. He mimicked Her, sniffing the batter, and his mixing slowed down some. "Hey mummy? Did we bake a lot together?"

She looked over at him with a smile. "yes dear, we did. you loved to help me in the kitchen"

"I still do!" He smiled widely and raised the spoon in the air. She chuckled a little, smiling at him, and She went over to him and took the bowl from him, and pulled out another tray. He stuck the spoon in his mouth, or at least tried, and he ended up only fitting the tip of it in. She put the tray down and poured the batter in carefully. He watched her do so, licking the brownie batter off the spoon. He mouth was completely covered in chocolate. She grinned at him as She noticed him licking the spoon covered in the chocolate brownie batter. "I like baking with you."

She finished pouring in the batter and fetched Her oven mitt and slipped it on and put the batch into the oven, and smiled to Herself at his words. She smiled at him as She turned back around to face him after She had closed the oven. "i love baking with you too, Dirky"

He smiled back and continued licking. "It's really fun." He attempted to feed Cal some of the batter unsuccessfully. "Him, not so much."

She smiled, putting the oven mitt away, and then walked over to him, and pet him on the head, ending it by gently caressing his cheek. "hm, oh whale. we can’t make him like it"

He giggled and nuzzled into Her hand. "He's just being a butt."

"i guess" She chuckled.

He hugged Her arm, letting Cal fall into his lap. "I love you mummy."

"i love you too" She scooped him up, and caught Cal for him before Cal could fall very far and She handed him back to Dirk. He grabbed him and hugged Her tight. He attempted to lick the brownie batter off his lips, still has batter around his mouth. She chuckled, and picked up a napkin to wipe his mouth off, and he giggled and rubbed his eyes sleepily.

He yawned and rested his head on her arm. She chuckled softly and held him close, kissing his forehead lightly. He hummed softly in response and nuzzled Her arm, growing drowsy. She rocked him gently, humming softly. She swayed a little as She walked him back to his bedroom, the blue bedroom, and She gently laid him down in bed. He hugged Cal loosely in his arms and smiled, finally getting comfy enough to sleep. "Night, mummy…" he mumbled.

She ran Her fingers through his blonde hair soothingly. "good night my little Prince. sweet dreams" She purred and kissed his forehead.

He sighed happily and drifted off to sleep. She sat by his sleeping form, petting him on the head lightly, until She decided to get up and check on the brownies in the oven. He rolled over, mumbling softly in his sleep; it was mostly nonsense. She decided it needed a few more minutes and then went to the batch She’d set out to cool. She neatly cut the brownies into squares and set them neatly on the plate that once held Dirk’s cookies.

Dirk stirred around in his sleep a little, seeming a bit upset. He held Cal tighter. She brought the brownies back in his room and set them on the table as She sat by him again. When She noticed his distress, She pet his head soothingly. He relaxed to Her touch and his became less restless. He murmured in his sleep one last time before hugging Cal closer and sleeps silently. She continued petting him, softly murmuring to soothe him, and waited for him to wake up again. After a while of him sleeping still, he shifted in his bed and his eyes fluttered open. "Mornin’."

She smiled warmly. "did you sleep well, my little Prince?"

He shrugged slightly and rubbed his eyes. "Don't remember."

She pulled Her hand back and put both of Her hands in Her lap as She smiled at him. "oh? you don’t remember if you slept well just now?"

He shrugged a little. "I had a dream but it was weird but I don't remember it."

"what can you remember from it?" She asked, looking at him with questioning curiosity.

He sat there a moment, trying to remember before he answered. "There was stuff going and…and it hurt but it didn't at the same time and I wasn't sure if I should've been scared or not." He yawned and stretched. "I dunno. It was weird."

She frowns a little. "hmm… oh whale; it was just a dream, Dirky"

He stretched and crawled out of the bed. He looked over at the knocked over Legos and began to pick them up. She stood and came over and sat near him on Her knees, helping him pick them up. He dumped them into the box and then noticed the big book in front of the bookshelf. "Woah." Her eyes followed to where he’s looking. "That’s a big book."

"yes, it is isn't it?"

He wandered over and stood on top of it, and She watched him from Her seat on the floor. He looked over at her and smiled widely. "Hey look! I'm as tall as you mummy!"

"almost there! you’re such a big buoy!" She chuckled lightly. He puffed his chest out and stood proudly atop the book. He then hopped off the big book, stumbling a bit, and he laughed it off. She smiled at him warmly, and held Her arms out, as if asking for a hug. He ran over and hugged Her tight, a huge smile plastered on his face. She smiles, cradling him in Her lap like he was a really little kid, and She gave him a little squeeze, grinning at him. She lifted him up a little and gave his nose an Eskimo kiss, chuckling a little. He giggled at the position he was in and kissed Her back. "Are we gonna do fun stuff today?"

She smiled somewhat sadly. "i reelly wish we cod, but i have some work to finish, sweetheart. will you be ocray in here on your own?"

"Oh okay." He looks around, thinking about something to ask. "That meanie isn't gonna come back right?"

She smiled and pet his head soothingly. "He won’t if i can help it. but if he does, you have to either come find me, or hide yourshellf away, alright?"

He nodded and fidgeted around a bit. "And I promise not to fight back like you said. No matter how much I know I could take him." He gave Her a determined look.

She shook Her head. "if he grabs you then you can fight back. it’d be reelly bad if he took you away" She nuzzled him. "i wouldn't sea you ever again. but if he tries to hurt you, then run or find me or get help from one of the guards, ocray?"

He frowned at the "i wouldn't sea you ever again" comment and wrapped his arms around her neck. "Okay. Cross my heart." He did the small gesture of putting an X on his chest.

She smiled and kissed his forehead, squeezing him in a small hug. "that’s my Dirk"

He giggled and hugged back. "Is there anyfin to eat this morning mummy?"

She nodded. "i left a plate of our brownies over there– oh!" She put him down, standing quickly. "i almost forgot! the batch in the oven! Dirk! wait here!" She ran out to go save Her kitchen.

He stood up and blinked a few times, not sure what had just happened. He wandered over to the plate of brownies She had mentioned and took one. He smiled wide and bit into it. He grabbed another one and pulled Cal off the bed and tried to feed him one. "Don't like sugar, huh?" he asked and ate it instead.

She returned to his room with the good brownies from the slightly burned batch on another plate. He ate another brownie and saw Her with another plate, and jumped up and down in excitement. "Brownies!" he cried. She smiled and chuckled a little, and then carried them over to him. "i sea you like them"

He nodded energetically and ate one from her new plate. "They’re yummy, mummy."

"thank you" She chuckled and popped one into Her own mouth, eating it.

"Hey mummy, what exactly is your job?"

"oh, i run a baking company dear"

"Hm, I could've guessed that." He finished the one in his mouth and he pat his tummy. She smiled, and set the plate next to the other one and then poked his belly playfully.

"H-Hey!" he giggled and held his tummy to try and protect it from the tickles. She smiled, chuckling, poking him playfully again. He fell down on his butt, laughing. "That tickles!" She knelt down beside him, chuckling as She continued tickling him. He laughed loudly and squirmed around, kicking his legs a bit. She laughed with him, tickling still. Tears formed in his eyes as he laughed. He rolled over on his tummy to try to hide it from her tickling. She chuckled and poked his sides; there was no escape. He wriggles around and his breathing is out of control. "O-Okay okay! I give up!" Dirk squealed. She laughed and stopped tickling him at his surrender. He kept laughing as he stood and hugged Her. His giggle fit subsided as he held Her tight. "I love you mummy."

She smiled, hugging him back tightly. "i love you too Dirky" She cooed as She kissed the top of his head.

He smiled back at Her happily, but it faded. "Do you have to leave today mummy?"

She smiled sadly. "only for a little while; i’ll be back by lunch at the latest, ocray?"

He nodded, grinning at Her. "Ocray. I'll be good."

She smiled lovingly and pushed his hair back. "good. i love you"

"Love you too." He closed his eyes and smiled as She kissed his forehead.

She nudged him off Her lap and stood, smiling, and She left the room. "oh!" She quickly poked Her head back in.

He sat on the floor and looked up at Her when She suddenly reappeared. "Hm?"

"one moor fin: you are whalecome to explore if you want. but if you get lost just find a guard and they’ll bring you back here ocray?"

"Okay!" He nodded happily and grabbed Lil Cal off the bed. She smiled at his enthusiasm and blew him a kiss before hurrying down the hall to leave. He poked his head out the door and watched Her leave. He looked at Cal and whispered. "Let's go wandering." The hallways were dim and the gray walls didn’t help add any light. Dirk strolled down the boring halls and looked around every corner for something interesting to investigate. After a few twists and turns, he came across an unfamiliar section marked with scarlet tile instead of the black marble tile. Down these halls, there were a few doors, which were white, with frosted glass windows. He blinked at the sudden contrast in color and followed the red tiles. He gripped Cal's arm tightly as he tried opening some of the doors in attempt to see something interesting. To his dismay, most of them were locked, the rooms inside dark. He gave a frustrated huff whenever he came across a locked one.

He was about to give up when he tried one more and found it unlocked. He pokes his head inside the dark room. The room was completely dark, save for the screensaver of a large computer screen, giving an eerie glow in the room. A strange, unidentifiable object sat on top of a table, but that was about all that was visible.

Dirk pushed open the door, which creaked as it slowly opened wider. He wandered over to the table and stood on his tiptoes to try and get a better look, but he was still not tall enough. He then tried jumping to see what was laying on it. From his jumps, the item on the table appeared to be some sort of crown, with lots of wires sprouting from it. He had the urge to touch it, but something told him he shouldn't. He wondered what it was, but quickly put the thought away in his memory and looked around the room to see if he could hit a key or push a button or something to make the face on the screen wake up. After moving closer he noticed some sort of touchscreen keyboard set up under the monitor. Dirk stood on his tiptoes and used Lil Cal's hand to poke it.

The face on the screen blinked its eyes open, shaking a little as if shaking its "head." Dirk tilted his head at the action and then mimicked the gesture for fun. The computerized face let out a digital yawn. "Cal" tapped the keyboard again, and the face suddenly seemed to notice Dirk. "Hm?_ Who_ are_ you?_ Who_ let_ you_ in_ here?_" it asked him.

"My name's Dirk. The door was open," Dirk answered. He held up Cal. "This is Cal. Mummy said I could wander around so I came in here."

"Hmm,_ She_ did_ huh._ I_see._"

"Who are you?" Dirk asked as he tried mimicking the robotic voice. "Are you a robot or a computer? Or both?"

"I_ am_ an_ artificial_ intelligence,_ or_ an_ AI_ unit_ known_ as_ Triton,_" the computer responded.

"Tri-in?" he attempted to say, failing adorably.

"Close_ enough,_" Triton replied. "I_ am_ in_ charge_ of_ overseeing_ many_ of_ the_ projects_ and_ inventions_ of_ the_ Betty_ Crocker_ Company._"

"…Cool." He didn't understand half of what he said. or it, rather.

"Well_ then._ How_ can_ I_ help_ you?_ Care_ to_ search_ the_ web_ using_ the_ Network?_ Or_ are_ you_ looking_ for_ a_ certain_ file?_

"What's a Crocker?" Dirk asked in a cheery voice. He put Lil Cal on his shoulders like he was giving him a piggy back ride. "And I guess searching a spider web sounds cool." Oh silly little Dirk.

"Well,_ Her_ Imperious_ Condescension_ uses_ the_ pseudonym_ Betty_ Crocker_ for_ the_ public,_ and_ I_ assume_ you_ are_ also_ a_ Crocker_ since_ you_ called_ Her_ "mummy"_"

He tilted his head and looked at Cal over his shoulder. "Dirk… Crocker?" He shrugged and turned back to the computer.

"I_ guess_ so._"

He tapped his foot as he thought. "What should I ask you?"

The computer rolled its virtual eyes. "Brilliant_ question._ You_ can_ ask_ whatever_ you_ want._"

Dirk finally thought of something to ask. "Well…if I have a mummy, then who's my daddy?"

The AI paused, and searched his databases. "…No_ matches_ found._ Sorry_ kid._"

Dirk puffed his cheeks out. "That's a dumb answer."

"I'm_ sorry._ But_ I_ have_ no_ records_ of_ even_ you_ here._"

He furrowed his eyebrows. "I'm here now, and mummy said so. She called me her little prince. So you're lying!"

"Hmm._ The_ only_ records_ appearing_ under_ the_ search_ "Dirk"_ refer_ to_ a_ Strider_ boy,_ an_ enemy._"

"Stirders are bad!" Dirk cried, stomping his feet in anger. "I'm not a Strider and never will be. Never ever ever!"

"I_ understand_ that,_ I'm_ merely_ saying_ that_ is_ what_ I'm_ getting._ I_ don't_ lie;_ I_ only_ present_ the_ known_ facts._"

He sat on the floor and hugged his knees to his chest. "Then you're facts are wrong." Tears threatened in his eyes. "I'll tell mummy on you if you keep lying."

The AI sighed. "I'm_ not_ calling_ you_ a_ Strider,_ Dirk._ I'm_ only_ saying_ I_ don't_ have_ any_ files_ on_ you._"

He sniffled and rubbed his eyes. "Then show me the picture of the meanie Striders."

"As_ you_ wish,_" the AI sighed, and pulled up a picture. It depicted David holding Dirk in his arms, both smiling widely for the camera, and both wearing their shades. Dirk also held onto Cal in one hand as he waved with the other. "…Now,_ I_ will_ admit,_ you_ do_ look_ like_ him._ But_ this_ is_ just_ my_ opinion._"

Dirk squinted at the picture and focused on the younger one. He…kind of looked like him and- Cal?! He looked between the Cal in the picture and Cal on his shoulders. He didn't even realize he was walking backwards until he stumbled into the table behind him.

"You_ okay_ there?_" Dirk frantically shook his head and started to cry loudly. "Whoa,_ hey,_ Dirk,_ come_ here._ It's_ okay._" Dirk stood and wandered over to the computer again, hugging Cal close, sniffling. "Look,_ I_ don't_ know_ what_ to_ tell_ you._ But_ it's_ possible_ that_ you_ only_ look_ like_ him._"

Dirk rubbed his eyes and nodded. He's never be a Strider. NEVER. He looked at the computer monitor again; the picture was practically taunting him now.

"However,_" the AI continued, "the_ other_ possibility_ is_ rather_ unsettling._ The_ other_ possibility_ is_ that_ you_ really_ are_ a_ Strider,_ and_ that_ She_ has_ been_ lying_ to_ you_ the_ whole_ time._"

Dirk felt angry and defensive at that. "M-Mummy wouldn't lie! She's nice and she loves me!"

"That_ depends_ on_ your_ definition_ of_ nice._"

He furrowed his eyebrows, crossing his arms. "Then definitiate nice."

"For_ one,_ nice_ means_ you_ truly_ care_ for_ others._ It_ can_ also_ mean_ you_ don't_ keep_ secrets._ But_ I_ should_ tell_ you,_ this_ is_ why_ the_ Striders_ are_ NOT_ nice:_ they_ constantly_ try_ to_ overthrow_ Her_ tyrannical_ rule._"

"T-Tyra…ranna…" He tilts his head in confusion, and then shook off the big word. "Just show me. "

"To_ rule_ absolutely_ over_ something._ In_ this_ case,_ its_ the_ world,_" Triton explained.

"That…doesn't sound nice."

"To_ some_ who_ know_ what_ the_ Striders_ do,_ they_ are_ considered_ heroes._ Despite_ the_ fact_ that_ they_ are_ only_ a_ bother_ to_ Her._"

Dirk felt conflicted now. "So… Striders are good? But not to mummy?"

"Depends_ really_ on_ how_ you_ look_ at_ it,_ but_ more_ or_ less,_ yes._"

"Hmm…" He remembered the thing on the table and pointed at it as he jumped up and down. "What's that thing?"

"That?_ That's_ a_ prototype_ for_ a_ product_ called_ a_ tiaratop._ It's_ a_ computer_ you_ can_ wear_ on_ your_ head._"

"Ooooh.~" Dirk jumped up and down more in excitement. "I wanna try!"

"It’s_ not_ finished_ yet._ Besides,_ it's_ prone_ to_ overheating_ itself_ and_ catching_ on_ fire._"

His jumping immediately stopped at the word _fire_. "…Nevermind." The computer chuckled. He thought about the previous conversation again and turned around to face him. "So…David Strider was his name right?"

"Which_ one,_ the_ older?_ Yes,_ but_ I_ don't_ remember_ saying_ his_ name._"

"Mummy told me that was his name earlier. When he was here the other day. I want to talk to him." He stamped his foot.

"Well,_ that_ was_ yesterday._ Indeed,_ he_ was_ here,_ claiming_ -whoa_ there,_ hold_ it_ Dirk._ Do_ you_ realize_ what_ you're_ asking?_ you_ want_ to_ talk_ with_ the_ enemy_ of_ your_ "mummy"_ and_ for_ what?_"

"I wanna tell him he's a poo brain and his little brother's a butt head for stealing my Cal and my face." Dirk was five and irrational.

"…" They stared at each other for a while in silence before Triton spoke up again. "…Dirk._"

"Tri-in."

"I_ found_ another_ folder._"

"What's in it? More lies?"

"I'm_ not_ sure_ what_ to_ make_ of_ it._ It_ appears_ to_ be…_ memories._ Whose,_ I_ don't_ know._ But_ it’s_ labeled_ 'dirk'._"

"Memories? M-My memories?" He furrowed his eyebrows.

"I_ don't_ know._ I_ can't_ see_ much;_ it_ has_ a_ passcode._"

"Oo! Try 1234!"

"No,_ I_ know_ it's_ not_ that._"

"…Did you TRY?" Dirk asked, crossing his arms and making Cal cross his as well.

"I_ wonder…_" Triton said to himself. A keypad appeared onscreen, and the keys 3-4-7-5 were highlighted in that order. "…Bingo,_ I’m_ in._" The screen went black, and then a series of boxes with pictures appeared onscreen to be selected. "Alright,_ let's_ see_ here…_"

Dirk bounced up and down, nervous and excited what all the boxes were all at the same time.

"Ooh,_ latest_ memory_ begins_ and_ ends_ yesterday._ About_ the_ same_ time_ that_ I_ know_ both_ were_-" He suddenly glitched. "Uh_ oh._"

"Tri-in?" Dirk slowly and nervously backed away from the monitor as the screen glitched badly.

"I_ seem_ to_ be_ having_ some-*glitch*-technical_ difficulties._"

"But why? What's wrong?" He ran up to the keyboard to try and see if he could do anything for him.

"Don't_ touch_ it._ I'm_-*glitch*-being_ hacked_ into._ And_ I_ can_ guess_ who_-*glitch*-it_ is_ too._"

Dirk backed away again and frowned. "Are you going to be okay? Who is it?? Is it Strider?"

A loud alarm suddenly went off. "Yep,_ I_ knew_ it._ I'll_ be_ fine,_ Dirk._ But_ you_ might_ want_ to_ run_ along_ to_ your_ room._ But_ one_ more_ thing_ first_ about_ Strider._"

The alarm made the blonde boy jump and he hugged Cal tighter. "W-What is it??"

"When_ he_ came_ yesterday,_ it_ was_ while_ claiming_ that_ She_ had_ stolen_ something_ important_ from_ him._"

"What was it?"

"I'm_ not_ sure,_ but_ sources_ tell_ me_ it_ was-" The AI glitched again, and then the screen went black.

Dirk stood there in fear for a few moments before reality snapped back to him. He turned on his heels toward the door and quickly ran through it. He dashed down the hall to find his room, trying to tie Lil Cal's arms around his waist as he ran.

Suddenly, Dirk and another figure who had also been running through the halls bumped into him and the two trip, colliding with the floor.


	5. Trial by Her Empress and Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mysterious figure emerges! And they just may be Dirk's worst nightmare to exist in reality…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A hand springs from the hardened dirt in front of a mossy tombstone. "I LIIIIIVE!!" IAG groans as she ascends from her grave.
> 
> Holy crap. To all those (if any) awaiting this chapter with anticipation, I AM SO SORRY. The explanation to the accidental hiatus is after the chapter.
> 
> Enjoy!  
> ~IAG

Dirk tumbled to the ground and felt a stinging pain to his knee. He held his leg as he sat back up. The five year-old whined at the pain and tried to stand up. The injury wouldn’t tolerate such a movement and he flopped back down on his butt.

The figure groaned from the impact to the floor and was going to deliver nothing more than a glance at the “thing” that tripped him. That was until it noticed that the “thing” was Dirk. The shadowy character took a double-take at the boy and nearly shouted at the sight of the kid. 

“…dirk?!”

Dirk tried to stand up but his knee gave in again and he fell back down, letting out a small whimper of pain. He froze at the sound of his name and looked up at the figure. “W-Who are you? How do you know my name?” The blond boy stuttered. He felt a wave of fear ripple down his spine. An unnerving feeling screamed at Dirk to run, but with the state of his knee (which was going to get nothing more than a small scrap later) he was in no shape to do so.

The mysterious figure was still for a moment, as if gawking in disbelief. “it-its me. its david, dirk! you know, bro?” After a moment of silence from the little blond boy, the figure moved into the light a bit more. His normally combed blond hair was astray from the fall, but his shades were still perfectly framed on his face. 

Dirk pulled Lil Cal into his arms and he tried scooting away from him, panic settling into his terrified soul. “G-Go away….” When Dirk started to make out the figure's face better, he attempted snailing faster. The blaring alarm was numbed to Dirk’s ears when he instantly recognized the face of the Strider from the picture. It was like a nightmare for the poor kid, injured and alone with the man that wants to take him away, or worse.

David stopped in his tracks, looking crestfallen even with the aviators hiding his eyes. “but-… but dirk, its me! please dont tell me She took you away completely…”

“Yeah, it’s you alright!” Dirk whined, clutching Cal to his chest as he tried worming away. “Meany Strider who wants to hurt me and take me away!” Dirk tried running instead of wasting the time to stand up completely first, but fell again. The boy can feel himself on the verge of tears again. He hugged his knee to his chest and attempted to hide from the stranger by hiding his face with Cal.

The Strider’s eyes widened behind his shades. “no… dirk i would never purposefully hurt you. its me, your big brother! dont you remember me?”

Refusing to listen to anything the stranger had to say, Dirk only managed to blubber out, “I want my mummy!” He started to cry and attempted to crawl away as best as he could yet again. The scared boy could barely think straight from the fear running through his small mind.

A frown played upon the older one’s face. The man flinched as guards surrounded the both of them suddenly. “Shit…” the Strider mumbled as he reached over and tugged Dirk’s wrist so he was in his arms.

Dirk smacked him with Cal since he took his free hand and screamed, fear trembling in the poor boy’s voice. “Let me go! Let me go!” He repeated again and again, kicking and flailing to no avail.

The Strider brushed the falling bangs from his face and shushed him, looking nervously at the guards as they closed in. “shhh, its okay, dirk. itll all be okay.” He’s never seen Dirk so terrified; the closest time was when Dirk somehow convinced him to let the boy watch ‘Saw’. He had to sleep with Dirk in his arms for days, ironically, with Cal pinned between them.

The boy kept at it, tugging and pulling and doing all he can to get away from him, the pain in his knee draining his energy quickly. “You already have a little brother, and he's not me! He wears dumb weird sunglasses. Let me go!”

The Strider gasped a little at the outburst, sounding as if he was offended on a deep and personal level, which he was. “oh dirk… dirk, what did She do to you?” The small crack in his voice made it sound like he was ready to cry.

Dirk kneed him (pathetically) without thinking and jammed him with his bad knee. He whined at the pain returning and started to cry, trying to hide his face from the Strider so he didn’t look weak. “G-Go away…” He choked out in between his sobs. The Strider frowned at how sad but serious he sounded saying those words. Before he could even try to comfort him, he was snagged by the back of his tie. He let out a short, gurgled sound when he was strangled at the tug back. Dirk was picked up by another guard as Dave struggled against four others, loosening the tie so he could struggle a bit easier. 

Dirk’s tears died out once he felt safe with the guards holding back the crazy kidnapper. “I-I can walk!” Dirk kicked around and dropped Lil Cal in the process. The rag doll’s limbs were a jumbled mess when it hit the floor, but the guard didn’t pay any mind to the poor sight. Dirk reached for him and whimpers softly as he stretched his arm to his best friend collapsed on the floor.

Strider cried out as they hit his head hard, and went limp for a moment from the impact which was enough to get a better hold on him. The shades slipped to the tip of his nose, his red eyes locked on his lost, little brother. He had a pitiful–almost defeated–look on his face. He was so close, but so far. It was painful to not hear Dirk calling his name in the arms of the enemy, yet a small ember warmed his heart at the sight of Dirk reaching for Cal. So he hasn’t changed that much after all… 

Dirk couldn’t help but shift his eyes up to the Strider’s stand-out red gaze. Normally, anyone with bright red eyes like those would be classified as evil or scary, but the innocent kid that Dirk couldn't help but feel kind of sorry for the guy, even though he was delusional and a Strider. The guard carrying Dirk disregarded the puppet, as if it wasn’t even in his radar, and marched Dirk back to his room. As Dirk noticed his position moving away from his friend on the floor, he started crying harder and squirmed in the drone’s grip. “Gimme him back! I want Cal back!” the poor boy shrieked as he practically threw his arms towards the puppet on the floor.

If the man didn’t know any better, David would say he was jealous of Cal’s treatment from Dirk right about now. The way he was kicking and screaming just to have him in his arms again. It hurt, but what was he to do? When the guards least expected it, the Strider tore away from them and snatched the puppet up. He attempted to run after the guard taking Dirk away and just threw it to the kid when he found he couldn't catch up and hand it to him. 

In his blind moment of tears, Dirk felt something soft hit his arm and he quickly pins it to the guard's back in order to grab it. When he tugged it up to see what it was, his shrieks and cries halted. 

‘Cal!’ 

Dirk blinked a few tears from his eyes and pulled Cal closer, nuzzling the puppet’s soft chest. The boy looked up at the Strider, who obviously threw it to him since he was ahead of everyone else and still recovering from the stumbling of throwing it so hard, and hesitated before he waved at him using Cal's hand as a thank you. 

A smile bloomed on the Strider’s face at the small gesture. The cute moment interrupted when the guards pinned him against the wall roughly, his shades askew on his face now. As they cuffed him, he looked at Dirk sadly from the corner of his eye until the guard escorting Dirk rounds the corner. 

Dirk stared back and felt his shoulders relax (when were they tensed up?) when the Strider disappeared from his line of sight. He frowned and hugged Cal as best he could with him being carried like a towel tossed over one’s shoulder. ‘Did that guy really do bad things?’ The question started to ponder in his mind after the kind deed the supposed bad guy just committed for him. ‘Is he the bad guy? If I’m on mummy’s side, and I know I’m good, then that makes that guy bad, right?’ Dirk’s childish brain began turning it’s gears to figure out this dilemma. Nothing was adding up for the poor kid, and he couldn’t think of a conclusion by the time he was back in his room. 

As the guard opened the door to Dirk’s room, Condy was pacing nervously, until She saw Dirk, at which, She fussed over him, taking him from the guard. “oh! i was so worried are you ocray? did he hurt you? oh you scared me so much...” She hugged him close, petting his hair as She fired a million questions at him. 

Dirk shook his head and hugged Her. Dirk contemplated about saying that the Strider hurt his knee on purpose, but after the whole Cal thing, Dirk decided he was in enough trouble. “No mummy, I'm ocray.” He mimicked Her fish pun just for the halibut.

Condy peppered the boy’s face in kisses, hugging him. “it’s ocray baby, you’re safe, it’s ocray…” She hushed to him, but Dirk honestly didn’t exactly need the consolation. He was already confused enough on the good guy/bad guy labeling in his head. The boy remained silent for a long time as She sat on his bed and stroked his head, knowing that he was practically scared to death back there. 

After a minute or so of the unneeded cuddling, Dirk finally spoke up, “What's gonna happen to him?” 

Condy frowned at the question, “don’t worry aboat that crook, i’ll deal with him.” 

“What does that mean?” He hugged Her tighter, hoping he isn't asking anything too wrong. The last thing he wanted was to say anything out of line or weird.

She sighed and kissed his forehead before nuzzling him again. “i’ll deliver punishment as i sea fit for a man as coralble as him.”

Dirk, for some reason in his gut, seriously felt sorry for him after all. He knew Strider was supposed to be bad, but he never acted it when it was just the two of them. Was it an act like some sort of mind game or attempted trickery? Dirk pushed the thinking aside and gave Her a smile in hopes of masking his doubtful thoughts. “…Ocray, mummy.” He tried not to look sad when he responded. Condy returned the smile back and kisses his head. She seemed very loving all of a sudden, probably because Dirk just slipped out of a seemingly dangerous situation, but it was still weird to him. She was his mummy after all.

“now, wait here, alright? mummy has to take care of the crook” The words made Dirk extremely anxious all of a sudden. He still didn’t know what ‘take care of him’ meant, but it sounded like the opposite of good. 

“B-But I want to come with you!” Dirk blurted out, sounding eager. The enthusiasm caused Her to quirk an eyebrow. 

“you do?”

“I-I want to see him pay!” The boy half-lied. Maybe this would make him see the Strider for who he is.

She seemed a bit surprised by his answer, but then smiled after a moment, patting him on the head. “that’s my prince. ocray, you can come.”

Dirk smiled at the pat and hugged Her leg. “Thank you, mummy.” His adorable kid charm worked like magic.

“you’re whalecome, my prince.” She squeezed back and started to pick him up until he started squirming around.

“Wait!” Dirk stopped Her, “Should I change? I'm still in my pjs. See?” He kicked his legs a bit to show off his orange and white baggy pajama pants. She laughed lightly at the little dance his legs were doing and nodded, setting him back down on his feet. As he touched back down to the floor, Dirk also decided not to tell Her about the computer thing. “…Where did I keep my clothes again?”

“over there. here lemme kelp.” She walked over to the dresser next to his bed and chose a clean white shirt and red slacks. The red color reminded Dirk of the man’s red eyes and smiled. It was perfect in his opinion. 

“I'll wear that.” The boy said as he took the outfit from Her, hugging the folded up clothing to his chest. Condy gave him one last pat on the head before She ducked out of the room for privacy, the door clicking shut. The small boy wriggled his way out of his wrinkled pjs and into the attire and looked in the mirror on the back of the door. He straightened his messy/spiky hair out before opening the door. “I'm ready, mummy.” 

“aw, look how adorabubble my prince is,” She said with a smile. She scooped him up in Her arms and closed Dirk’s bedroom door. 

The boy glanced down at Lil Cal, draped in his arms. He noted how Cal was in just his orange undersuit and blue shirt. “Should Cal get changed too?” 

She shook Her head, “nah, Cal’s fine.”

“Ocray, then I'm reely ready then!” 

The excess amount of fish puns got a chuckle out of Her and She started to walk him to the throne room. The big room echoed as Her fuchsia heels clicked against the tile. 

She sat on Her tall red throne and situated Dirk in Her lap so he’s comfortable. Taking in their surroundings, he cradled Lil Cal in his lap and gave him a concerned look. 'Everything will be okay. Everything will go back to normal...' he mentally told his friend. Once Dirk was still in Her lap, She snapped Her fingers and the heavy metal footsteps of the robotic guards entered the room. 

In between the two guards was none other than David, being roughly tugged in and made to stand before Her. His wrists cuffed in front of him and each guard had a tight hold on his arms. His head was bowed low so his gaze could go no higher than his feet. If he dared to look up, he knew he’d be met with Her sitting up high with a shit-eating grin that’d make any enemy scowl.

'Everything'll be okay,' Dirk told himself as the man was marched in, 'It’ll all be okay once he's dealt with… whatever that means.' The boy held Cal tighter and frowned at the sight. He still felt bad for him, which made him frustrated. ‘He’s a bad guy, you’re not suppose to feel bad for him!’ Cal’s head sort of nuzzled against his cheek, helping his breathing to calm down. Dirk took a deep breath and gave Cal a little nuzzle back. He was a good friend.

Then, She spoke in a sort of smug tone, “whale, whale, whale; look who crawled back into my ship yet again.” She glared down at his defeated-looking form and tapped Her fingers against the armrest, waiting for a response. 

After a moment, he picked-up his head and his nose twitched ever so slightly when his hidden eyes fell on Dirk. His jaw tightened and he swallowed hard before he muttered softly, “shes gonna make him watch? that bitch, why i outta-” His silent train of thought was interrupted by Her Excellency's voice. 

“david elizabeth strider,” Dirk could almost see the man roll his eyes behind his aviators at the sound of his full name. When he squinted, Dirk could could actually take note of what he was mumbling to himself. “i hereby declare you gillty of the following crimes:”

“and cue the bullshit.”

“treason against the crown on multiple occasions-”

“a corrupt crown if you ask me and everyone else on this planet.”

“assault, attempted kidnap twice-”

“oh, yeah, im the kidnapper. it is me. god, a blind woman could see this courtroom is flawed.”

Dirk could see the man grit his teeth and mumble as She listed everything off. Dirk’s attention resumed on his mummy when he heard ‘attempted kidnap twice’ and furrowed his eyebrows at the last one. Twice?

He leaned back into Her arm and whispered. “Kidnap who twice?”

The question earned a few pets on the head from Her. “you dear. it was noted that he tried to crab you and take you once he knew who you were.” Dirk mouthed an ‘oh’ and hugged Cal, resting his chin atop his head, shifting the hat on the puppet’s head a little. Dirk did recall David grabbing him, but why was he being nice to him? 

Dirk’s eyes shifted back on the Strider and he noticed how David was pretending to fall asleep standing up; his head lolled to one side and his jaw hung open a bit. He held back a giggle at how his head shot back up and his soft snoring ceased when She began speaking once again.

“now then. for such crimes, normally, the punishment would be death.”

Dirk’s body tensed at the mention of “death”. By the way She continued speaking, it seemed She didn’t notice.

“but you Strider,” She smirked deviously, “you are a special case”

David rolled his eyes at the Empress’s words. “im so flattered. whatre you gonna do? should i be shaking in my suit?” Dirk noted that he was very sarcastic. Reely sarcastic. Sarcastic enough where Dirk had to constantly remind himself not to show himself smiling.

“i sentence you to life in prison, and when i find your brother...” Her eyes wandered from where David stood to the boy who sat in Her lap, completely oblivious to whom She was referring to. It made Her pink lips curl into a grin, Her shark-like teeth bared out for just a moment. She hid Her evil smile when Dirk turned his head around to see why She paused. “it will be the same fate, but you will never be able to sea him. ever.”

David’s hidden eyes widened, his shoulders tensed, and his jaw tightened. “you leave him out of this. i can live with myself being caught in your fishnet of a prison, but you leave Dirk alone.”

The boy furrowed his eyebrows and huffed in frustration. ‘Is this guy still on that?’ Dirk thought to himself, looking down at Cal as if mentally talking to him, ‘I mean, the picture… the younger one looked like me but only a little. So no, it wasn't me. It could never be me! Mummy would never throw him in jail forever!! And-’

His thoughts were cut short by Her voice, “now then, any last words before you go to your cell, Strider?” She tapped a finger against the armrest of Her throne, waiting for a verbal response. 

Strider smirked and flipped his bangs out of his face without the use of his hands. “yes actually, if you don’t mind,” he looked directly at Dirk who sat snugly in Her lap, “you’re feeding him lies. i can play along with them only so long. and after he’s accepted the truth, what are you gonna do then– carry out your promise?” He never broke gaze from Dirk which sort of made the boy uneasy.

Condy scoffed at his words and snapped her fingers, which echoed in the huge room. Just like that, the guards hooked each one of his arms and hoisted him away, his heels dragged against the floor as he was carried off. He doesn’t say anything more; it’d be unnecessary. He did, however, give Dirk one last look as he turned the corner into a blue corridor.

The boy waved with Cal's hand, subtly, so She wouldn't be able to see it. The last thing Dirk could see of him was a small smirk that appeared as soon as the man disappeared. A sigh from Her drew his attention away as well as Her arms that curled around him. Dirk rested his hands over Hers in the rear hug and looked up at Her with the innocent expression every young child bared. “Mummy, what was he talking about?”

She just shook her head. “oh, he’s delusional, baby. he’s got this odd idea that you’re his brother, who was separated from him when he was young.” She paused to give him a peck on the forehead. “but it’s impossible. you’re my prince, Dirky.”

The explanation just made him feel worse. His gaze fell back to the hall entrance the “bad” man was dragged down. “...I know, mummy.” Dirk mumbled as he squeezed Cal’s hand, finding it more comforting than the hug he was in.

“i don’t have a clue where or when he got it; the first time he ever tried to get you was yesterday.”

Dirk sat there in silence for a while, silently trying to work out what he wanted. He looked down at Cal’s plush hand in his. Cal’s thumb poked out from between Dirk’s fingers, as if telling him to go for whatever he was thinking of. Dirk winked at him. “Hey, mummy? Are you still gonna be gone today?”

She hummed softly and petted his light hair. “...whale, i have one last errand to run. i have a meeting with my bass and who knows how long that will take.”

“Bass?” Dirk questioned.

“my boss,” She clarified.

Dirk nodded his head at the connection and then let out a long sigh in attempt to sound disappointed. “Aww, ocray, mummy…” he whined, pouting.

She laughed lightly at the pun and kissed his forehead, admiring how quickly he was catching on. “oh, its ocray, my prince. i’ll try to make it as quick as i can, ocray?”

Dirk nodded again. He had a feeling bubbling in his stomach that whatever he was planning could be the stupidest thing he's ever done. Then again, he's a kid so he doesn't quite understand the scale of the situation his plan could put him in, just that it gave him a bad feeling. “Am I still allowed to wander around?” He asked with a hopeful tone.

She hesitated before answering, “...yes you can, but this was something i forgot to mention earlier. if the floor has red tiles, it’s off-limits, and the lower deck is also off-limits.” Dirk tensed and blinked a few times. Shoot, he was already in trouble. 

“O-Ocray, I won’t ever go there. Never ever!”

“good boy,” She praised him as she petted his hair gently. She turned him around by his shoulders so he was facing Her. “now, the incident before, where you did go in the red hall, i will let slide since you didn’t know.”

Dirk swallowed hard. “Y-You know about that?” How much does She know about that?

“why of course dear. i know everything that goes on in this ship, not to mention that’s where they found you and the lunatic.” 

Dirk gave a nervous laugh, remembering the scene. “Oh, I was, wasn’t I? That makes sense. Oops.” He wished She'd wouldn’t call him that; the Strider guy a lunatic. It made Dirk feel worse for what he was going to do.

She nodded and kissed his head yet again. “the red tiled halls and the lower decks are very dangerous, so please try to stay out of them, ocray?”

“What's on the lower decks?”

“oh, the engine room, a few prison cells, the boiler room. nothing special.” She said so nonchalant, probably in hopes of making the areas seem boring.

Cal's hand received a tighter squeeze in the middle of the sentence. “Alright, I won't then.”

“the cells down there are for prisoners who are especially violent,” She warned him, still petting his hair, “and they will attack on sight. so they are very dangerous, Dirky.”

A convincingly face scowl appeared across Dirk’s face. “Like… Strider?”

“yes, like Strider. so when i say stay out of there, i mean it.” She said in a motherly tone, stern yet still kind.

Dirk nodded and scooted out of Her lap and onto his feet. The only pain left in his legs from the trip earlier that day had faded away thankfully. Cal soon followed into his arms. “I’ll be good. I promise.”

With a smile, She pulled the boy into a loving departing hug plus kiss on cheek. “i love you.”

Dirk returned the hug and kiss on the cheek. “I love you too, mummy.” 

Once the brief farewells had been established, She rose to her feet and exits the room as Her heels clicked with each step, dreading the future meeting with Her boss. She blew Dirk a quick kiss over her shoulder and waved as She disappeared from sight. The young boy didn’t have enough time to wave back before She was gone. The room was empty now; no guards, no adults, just a little boy and his friend. Dirk stood still in that spot for a few moments afterwards. What was he to think? After everything that had happened, he was still torn how he should feel. The computer room, the Cal thing–too many things lined up for his subconscious’s liking. 

After confirming his plan of action, he started shuffling towards the blue hallway–where they took Strider away. 

Dirk whispered to Cal, reassuring himself more than anyone on what he was doing, “I'm gonna give that guy a piece of my mind.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, sooooo sorry! thedaveanon gave me the reins completely for once and I wanted to finish it right before the con I was going to (back in July haha), which didn't happen. Then I got stuck with post con blues for like three weeks. And theen, I wanted to finish it before school, that didn't happen. AND THEN, once I heard about the unpause, I put my foot down and steam rolled through the rest of this. "I WILL POST CHAPTER 5 BEFORE THE UNPAUSE OR ELSE I AM A FAILURE TO ALL!!" I told myself. 
> 
> AND I DID IT. 
> 
> But yeah, once school started, it was just a mess me trying to write this and I'm really sorry. I have been working on this the entirety of the short hiatus, just in small segments. Due both me and thedaveanon both being in school, an official updating schedule will not be established. Sorry, I would love to tell you "every monday" or "every _ number of weeks" but I don't want to make promises I can't keep. It'll most likely be whenever it's done.
> 
> Also, I doubt my co-writer will ever let me work on a chapter by myself again HAHA. I'm sure even she was all "da fuck man??" 
> 
> Anyway, now that all that's out of the way, questions, comments, concerns, ratings? How'd I do? Let us know!  
> ~IAG
> 
> EDIT:  
> It turns out that thedaveanon is going to be unavailable to write the story for a while, so until then it seems I'm going to be doing it. I'LL DO MY BEST I SWEAR!  
> ~IAG


	6. Post-Trial Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is without possibly the stupidest thing the young Dirk could ever do in his life (at least to his knowledge).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I haven't posted a chapter since LAST YEAR. *winks* I'm not sorry.
> 
> Anyway, what I am incredibly sorry for is the delay and I have some VERY IMPORTANT NEWS at the end so stick around!

The blue walls towered over the young boy. He kept his eye out for any guards as made his way down the cobalt colored hallway. He clutched Lil Cal tightly in his arms. 'You'll keep me safe won't you?' he asked him in his head, worried his voice would echo too loudly if spoken.

At the end of the hall, there was a fork in the hall. The left way went up a ramp while the right way traveled down stairs. Dirk looked down each of the halls and thought long and thoroughly. One direction led to his destination, the other mostly likely across the ship. He decided subconsciously wanted to check the ramp first, dragging Cal behind him. He didn't trust the stairs, not one bit.  
Her words echoed back to him: "the red tile areas…and the lower deck…" That’s when he stopped mid-way up the ramp and groaned. With a huff, he trudged over the the stairs instead.

The boy stood at the top of the stairs, glaring down them. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. They looked fairly steep for someone of his size, not to mention fairly narrow. Who designed stairs like this? Dirk managed to take his sweet time going down each step, careful not to slip, the cold metal not making the trek any easier. His eyes were locked on his feet with each motion he made. The stair railing – a loose metal chain, rather than a more sensible sturdy pole –was a pitiful excuse for a rail. Who in their right mind designed a flight like this?

He rushed himself when he was almost there, using the pitiful excuse of a railing but alas, it was shit at its job. The frightened boy lost his footing and slipped on the metal stairs and tumbled to the floor. His knee started to hurt again and he scuffed his arm up too. The boy doubted the stupid floor or the stairs was sorry.

Dirk sat up and reached for his beloved friend – Cal!? Where’d he go? Dirk looked around frantically for his best friend. His eyes fell upon the puppet friend up the flight of stairs, snagged on the chain railing around where Dirk fell. Cal had gotten tangled in the chain railing when Dirk had fallen. With a heavy sigh, Dirk crawled up the stairs slowly, the cold metal pinching the skin on his palms, and then tugged his best friend out of the stupid chain railing once high enough. Once the puppet's arms were tied around his waist, he made his way back down.

Stairs will forever and always be the bane of man’s existence.

The sound of something heavy dragging across the metal floor echoed in the hall. A small gasp escaped the young boy’s lips as he recognised the sound. Guards. He quickly laid his tiny body on one of the steep steps, clinging Cal to his body protectively. The boy prayed they wouldn’t march down the steps, either crushing him or finding him. He rolled over, expecting metal against his back, but instead felt emptiness. Dirk reached behind him and felt nothing, then his hand hitting the underneath of the step above the one he was laying on.

Quickly, he slid inside the hollow steps and squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the steps to fade and hoped they wouldn’t suddenly stop.Cal continued to be crushed in Dirk’s arms until the guard faded away. Dirk opened his eyes and swallowed hard at the close call, thankful that it had been only that. He crawled out of the bottom step and dusted himself and Cal off.

Holding the friend in his arms, he scurried his way down the hall in the direction opposite from the sound of the guard’s footsteps. As he moves lower and lower, the hallways grew darker. Eventually, behind a heavy door, there was a hall of doors with barred windows. This seemed like a prison.

Just as he slowly creaked the door shut, there was a soft mumble. Dirk froze instantly. Was this the end of his journey for the night? Had be been caught? His head turned slowly toward the source and noticed it was just a sleeping officer. A breath of relief escaped his lips and Dirk turned his attention back to the cells.

From what Dirk could see, there was no other sign of life besides the single huge are hanging out of the door. It looked as though it could rip out the bars on the windows with ease if they really wanted to.

Dirk made sure to steer clear from said lone arm as he walked down the dark hall. He held onto Cal tighter as he looked up at the windows. He wished he was tall enough to look through them. Even if he stood on his tip toes, the top of his head wouldn’t even reach. Even if he could, Dirk is still afraid that someone, or something, would grab at him.

The boy looked at Cal and Cal looked at him. After a moment of silence, they nodded in agreement (though Dirk tilted Cal’s head to make him nod), and Dirk hoisted Cal up on his shoulders. He tiptoed down the hall past the windows, being sure to stay very quiet.  
“See him yet Cal?” Dirk whispered quietly as he inched closer and closer toward the sleeping guard’s desk.

In the cell at the very end of the hall, David heard faint whispering, and he slowly picked up his head. The voice was quiet, but he could recognize it from anywhere. His eyes widened the more he listened.

“…dirk?” the man whispered softly. Hope fluttered in his heart as he pushed himself to his feet and looked out the barred window of the door. He heard nothing. David sighed. It was his imagination, again.

He was about to turn back when he was given a facefull of Cal. David had to bite his tongue to keep from yelping in surprise and had to catch his shades that nearly slipped off his face when he jumped. God, he could tolerate that puppet whenever he needed to for Dirk except for whenever it was unexpectedly shoved in his face, which happened more often than one would think.

He took a minute to calm down and get his heart rate back to normal before he whispered again. “right in my face? really? you could give someone a heart attack that way”

“Well, I didn't now, did I?” Dirk whispered back to him and pulled Cal close to his chest. The kid was so short in comparison to the door, he practically had to look directly up. He took a few steps back so he didn’t strain his neck too much to look at the Strider.

David huffed, but he was really glad to see him, even if he’d been nearly scared to death. Truth was, he had been feeling as though there wasn’t any hope, but here was his brother before him. Does he finally remember?? “its fine just… jeez”

Dirk was glaring at him in an irritated manner. They kept their voices hushed during this encounter. “Besides, this is all your fault. You ruined everything. You deserve a scare.”

His heart plummeted again. Guess he doesn’t. “my fault? what did i ever do to you to deserve that kind of scare?”

“You tried stealing me yesterday, because I happen to look like your long lost little bro, and you took my memories away!” Dirk pointed at him with Cal’s arm.

“i tried ‘stealing’ my own brother who had been stolen from my own home an hour before i could get there to protect him?” David snorted quietly, the very thought was funny to him, “yeah because that makes total sense”

“For the last time, I'm not your brother! I don't even like you,” Dirk lied.

David gripped the bars tightly at that. He was starting to become desperate. Sarcasm was obviously not getting through to him. He changed his method to just being direct. “dirk, Shes brainwashing you”

“No She isn’t! I haven't even had my bath yet. How could that even be a thing?”

David smirked, fighting back a chuckle. Whether it was sarcasm or ignorance, it was still freaking cute. God he missed him. “not that kind of washing Shes changing the way you think so it matches the way She wants you to think Shes put you under the impression that im evil and bad” David explained crossed his arms in front of the bars as he leaned on his elbows, “hasnt She?”

Dirk pouted and looked away. “Only cause it’s true.”

“in reality youre my brother! my little man... my little bro” David was struggling to keep his voice down desperately. He was losing his cool faster than ever in stressful situations. “She took you from me threatened me with your safety and then wiped your memories completely”

Dirk sneered and looked away as he mumbled, “Didn't your mummy teach you not to lie so much?”

“im telling the truth!” David cried, heartbroken. A loud snore from the guard startled him and waited for his stirring to die down before he continued. “dirk i have no reason to lie to you. please just believe me”

Dirk frowned. “… Whale, I guess you sort have a point. But I'm not believing you just yet. Technically, you have no reason to tell the truth!”

David sighed. It was a start. “alright i wont force you to believe me but im not going to sit around and watch Her completely take all traces of the old you” David held up one finger and continued, “first off no more fish puns please its ‘well’ not ‘whale’"

“Ocray. Fine.”

“‘okay’"

Dirk puffed his cheeks out in annoyance. “Is there a second thing, Mr. Spelling?”

“hey thats pronunciation thank you” he wagged his finger like a nagging adult would. “and second what happened to your shades? i know they were with you when She went and erased your memory”

Dirk stared up at him, completely oblivious as to what he was referring to.

“dark sunglasses shaped like triangles” David tried to trace the scalene shapes around his own shades to help.

“Oh, I've only seen those in pictures,” Dirk said quietly in reply, finally figuring out what he was referring to. “Of you and YOUR little brother.”

David paused at that news and scratched his head in confusion. “…wait She has pictures of us?”

“The computer did.”

“where did She find them?!”

Dirk shrugged. “Some web. I saw it before you butted in here the second time.” David let out a tired sigh at that.

There was a rather long pause before the boy spoke up again while he gave the man a sad expression. “How bad is it in there?”

“so cramped i might be having a period im not even sure where the bathroom is”

The joke flew over Dirk’s head and turned to the sleeping guard for a moment and looked back at David.

It took a moment for the silent message to get through. An eyebrow lifted above the rim of his shades as it clicked. “… if youre thinking what i think youre thinking then im having conflicted emotions here”

Dirk pointed up to him with a serious look. “You promise that you won't try to hurt me if I do?”

The man held up his right hand, as if he were swearing an oath. “i have never hurt you except when tickle fights ended with us running into furniture”

Dirk suppressed a giggle at that and nodded in response. The guard made another loud snore that made both of them freeze. David held his breath nervously as the guard murmured in his sleep. He let out a soft sigh as he saw the guard get settled again. With a grin, he gave Dirk a thumbs-up to say the coast was clear.

Dirk slumped in relief. He held Cal's arm up to David. “Hold Cal. I'm going to to get you out and he's been liking to cause mischief lately.”

The elder Strider took the puppet somewhat reluctantly. “alright” he decided against telling him that he needed to go back in so She wouldn’t get suspicious and so that neither of them would get in trouble. It might crush the poor boy.

Dirk hesitated. He debated silently whether he was doing the right thing before raising a pinky to him, standing on his tiptoes. “Promise you'll give him back as soon as possible?”

He smirked at the adorable gesture, beginning to feel hopeful again as he extended his own pinky. “promise”

He curls his tiny pinkie around David's bigger one, and the boy couldn't help but smile. For some reason he couldn’t describe why; helping this supposed criminal felt like the right decision. David smiled back, and Dirk could see the smile reach his eyes just behind the man’s dark sunglasses. The man really did care about his brother a lot, whether Dirk was actually him or not.

“I'll be back for you Cal, and you too Strider,” Dirk promised as he slid back down to his feet, letting go of his pinkie.

He smirked. “call me Bro, or David, okay? be careful”

“Okay... David. I will.” Dirk nodded to him and then turned his attention to the guard as David watched from the window nervously. He tiptoed carefully toward the guard with occasional glances back at David.

The keys, of course, were linked to a key ring that was around one of the two legs of the chair the guard leaning back in. Dirk felt like facepalming.

He looked at David, took a deep breath and walked over to the guard, nice and slow as he thought of something else he could do. David watched nervously, and offered him a smile as Dirk looks at him, unsure what he was doing.

Dirk swallowed hard before nudging the guard's arm. “Sir?”

David covered his face with his hand. “god dammit” he muttered softly into his palm. He watched through his fingers on on his left hand, the right clutching Cal to his chest.

The guard grunted and then slowly opened one eye to look at Dirk in annoyance. He had been in the middle of a rather pleasant nap and Jack Noir didn’t have time for any meddling kids to be messing around on his watch.

Dirk smiled and waved at him. “Sorry to wake you, but I kind of have to.”

The supposed Noir grunted and asked why.

Dirk pointed down the hall. “I saw a weird guy over there being sneaky. I think he escaped.”

The guard grumbled in annoyance and went to investigate, just in case the kid was being truthful. If he weren’t, he could always lock him away and let his “mummy” find and punish him for being so far from his room.

David let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, and smirked at him in relief. Once the guard was a little ways away, Dirk carefully lifted the leg of the chair up and snatched up the keys carefully so they wouldn't make too much noise as he pulled them off the leg. He set the chair back down and wandered over to David's door with his hands behind his back.

“If you are evil, you owe me soooooo badly. I risked getting seriously grounded back there,” Dirk whispered.

“youre risking getting grounded just coming down here arent you” David whispered in response. Dirk looked away and didn’t respond as he fumbled with the keys. David paused, his pride for his little brother swelling, and he smirked. “aw i feel touched”

He stuck his tongue out and started testing keys to see if one would unlock the door. “Even if you aren't evil, you still own me.”

“understood”

One after another, with the occasional drop of the keys, he attempted to open the door. He grumbled after each attempt and David watched each attempt, nervous about when the guard would be back. Finally, Dirk finds the right key on the ring, and David steps back a little as the door creaked open. Dirk braced himself for something, anything to happen; whether it was David or the guard to show up behind him or anything really. He just let loose what he assumes a supposedly highly dangerous criminal and... the guilt settled in.

David dusted off his suit and smiled a little at him. He looked immensely relieved to see his lost little brother physically okay at least. He wanted to hug him, to hold him close again, to take him home and to keep him safe forever. However, he restrained himself to keep from accidentally scaring Dirk.

Dirk thought about how his mummy would react and, being the little kid that he is, expected the worse. He remembered what she said about "execution" (or some big word like that) and how'd She'd punish David's brother too and... what if he was? He looked down at the floor and started to sniffle, trying his hardest not to freak out and failing.

David’s eyes widened a little as he noticed Dirk starting to cry. “hey… hey its okay its okay bro” He kneeled to get eye level with him and held his arms out, as if asking for a hug. “cmere”

The tears started to fall as he accepted the hug (what was the worse that could happen?) and pressed his face into David's shoulder and wrapped his arms loosely around his shoulders.

David held him close, hugging him tight, and patting his shoulder in a comforting manner. “shhhhhhh…” he murmered soothingly. David squeezed his eyes shut as he hugged him tighter and he felt like crying himself; he had him back (at least for now). No one was going to hurt his little brother anymore, or ever again--not if he had any say in it. He murmured softly and soothingly to him. “i got you dirk its okay Bro's got you…”

Dirk tried calming down. He really tried, but he just couldn't. He was hysterical and the tears kept flowing and small hiccups kept interrupting his words. “I-I-I don’t wanna-- g-get exelcuted by-by mummy.”

After a few minutes of soft consoling and back rubbing, David pulled away and smiled at him as he handed Cal back to him. “here you are i bet he really missed you”

Dirk attempted to dry the tears with Cal's hand, hugging his friend tightly. He sniffled and was about to start sobbing again when David brushed the falling tears away. “its okay dirk no ones going to die especially not you” He shot the boy a small smile. “not if i can do anything about it youre going to be fine”

Dirk rubbed his other eye and David managed to calm Dirk down to tiny sniffles and hiccups with those words. Hopefully, no one else heard his little episode. “P-Promise?” He stuck his small finger out as he rubbed his eye.

David smiled and wrapped his pinky around Dirk’s. “i promise” In all honesty though, in the back of David's mind, he didn't know if that was a promise he could keep, but, for the love of his little brother, in the world he would try.

Dirk found his arms wrapped around David's neck with Cal's legs dangling over the larger one’s shoulder. “Carry me?” he asked in a small voice.

He heard David sigh and relaxed to the touch of him petting his hair, “i wish i could just take you back to your room or even better back home and not have to worry about Her anymore...”

“So what now?”

David stiffened as he heard the sound of faint footsteps. “now? now i go back in there-” He nodded to the cell. “-and you hide put the keys back too”

“B-But then we're back at the start.” The tears started to swell up again.

He shook his head and dabbed Cal’s hand to dry the tears. “theres no way we can get away yet. besides i thought you didnt trust me” He smirked lightheartedly.

“Trusted you enough to let you go without you killing me or something.” Dirk grumbled and puffed his burning cheeks out.

David snickered a little. “i was kidding... but we cant get away yet this place is full of guards and besides if we really wanna get away we would have to deal with Her first”

“And get my memories back, right?”

David smiled. “of course that almost goes without saying”

Dirk nodded and heard the footsteps growing closer. He wriggled out of David's arms and shuffles over to put the keys back.

“wait the door!” David slunk into the cell again and closed the door. “you need to lock it again theyll get suspicious if they find it unlocked”

“Okay.” He scurried back over with the keys and tries to relock the door, having to go through each key. “Where should I hide?” He was a bit busy with trying to lock the door than to look himself.

“anywhere nearby that the guard wont see you”

Dirk finally found the right key and locked the door. He put the key ring back under the leg of the chair and frantically looked around for somewhere to hide. He held onto Cal tight and gave the desk a double-take before he ducked underneath and curled up in a corner, praying he wasn't going to be found as he made sure Cal's limbs were tucked away neatly in his lap, holding him in a tight hug.

David cringed at Dirk’s choice and moved away from the door so as not to attract attention to himself. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so nervous. The heavy footsteps of the night guard drew closer; his muttering about lying kid and how She would hear of it, and how She should learn to control the strange vermin child who came on board better could be heard.

Dirk silently mocked him by moving his mouth to mimic what he said, but he kept still otherwise. The guard came into Dirk’s view as he sat in his chair and propped his feet up on the desk as he leaned back to relax. The boy hoped his breathing wasn't too loud or his existence was noticed by the grumpy man. He pressed Cal's chest to his face in order to muffle himself just in case.

The guard mutters about stupid paperwork, but just ignored it obviously as his head tipped down and he started to doze off. A few feet away, David watched from the shadows of his cell through the window and waited a few minutes for Jack to slip into his nap completely. He was going to whisper to Dirk that the coast was clear, but with Jack’s snoring, it wasn’t necessary. Moments later, Dirk crawled around the unstable chair and silently hoped his chair wouldn’t fall over backward and wake up to see him, even if that would be the funniest thing to happen all day.

“What now?” Dirk whispered to David who just appeared at the cell door window.

David jerked his head to the side in the direction of the door out of the prison hall. “start heading to your room little man” he said in a hushed voice. Dirk whimpered at that news and leaned against the door. At the moment, David seemed just as nice as mummy. Can’t he have both?

“dirk you have to” David tried to convince the moping child, “youll get in trouble if She finds you here. Dirk yawned before he pushed himself off the door, stumbled a bit, and rubbed his eyes. He nodded finally.

“ill see you as soon as i can okay?” Dirk nodded again.

“It’ll probably be the other way around though…” Dirk mumbled. The boy waved at the man, which was returned, as he shuffled away and out the door with Cal dragging at his feet. Dirk looked back at him one last time before he faced forward again. It earned a smile from the elder Strider.

Dirk looked at the floor in front of him as he moved along the long hall. He looked at Cal being dragged next to him. “Did I do the right thing?” he whispered to him as he pulled the stuffed Cal up into his arms. Cal gave a silent response and the boy yawned.

Once through the door, Dirk had soon came back to the stairs that brought him down there and a groaned bubbled in his throat. He breathed out a heavy sigh and stood there for a moment. “Stairs are stupid,” he grumbled as he stayed close to the wall as he crept up them.

Before he could get far, he heard hushed voices at the top along with footsteps that approached.

Dirk froze. Did the guard tell on him?! Had he been caught!?! In his moment of panic, he crawled into the hollow stairs and held Cal close to him. He hoped the voice couldn't see him. He prayed that he was hidden enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh shit! What's gonna happen?! actually don't get too excited so you might not see it for a while.. keep reading to see why.
> 
> Alright let's cut to the chase. I have news, kind of hard to determine if its good or bad or both.
> 
> thedaveanon and I have decided to republish this work due to our mutual agreement on our efforts put into the first few chapters. We agreed that the first few chapters are a bit "half-assed" and we wanted to do better. We realized this when chapter 5 was posted since that was the one that we REALLY wanted to do this story and wanted to have that show in the first chapter. So, whether this work is going to be deleted is unknown, but we are going to be re-editing and re-posting the new and improved chapters 1-6 later once we work out scheduling since we're both in school and in tough classes and its a pain in the ass for me to get in the writing mood. 
> 
> We are already working on the new chapters, and don't worry! The story isn't going to be changing much, we just want to show all of our effort into this from the beginning!
> 
> We appreciate your patience with us and we hope you have a great day!
> 
> ~IAG


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